Fidji Simo steps down from OpenAI’s second-in-command role

In short: Fidji Simo is stepping down from her full-time role as OpenAI’s No. 2 executive and will move to a part-time advisory role.

What happened

Fidji Simo, a top executive at OpenAI, is leaving her full-time position after a medical leave lasted longer and was harder than she expected. She shared the update in a note to staff, according to reporting by The Wall Street Journal and TechCrunch.

Simo joined OpenAI’s board in 2024. In May 2025, she took a newly created job as CEO of Applications, reporting to CEO Sam Altman. Her role brought key business and product teams under one leader, including the company’s operations, finances, and product leadership.

In April, Simo said she was taking medical leave due to a relapse of a neuroimmune condition. Since then, OpenAI has also seen other leadership changes, including departures by its chief product officer Kevin Weil and its chief marketing officer Kate Rouch.

Simo came to OpenAI from Instacart, where she had been CEO since 2021 and led the company through its 2023 IPO (when a company sells shares to the public for the first time). Before Instacart, she worked at Meta for more than a decade, including running the Facebook app.

Why it matters

OpenAI is reportedly considering its own IPO, and it is also trying to grow its business tools for companies, where it competes closely with Anthropic. Losing a second-in-command is like losing a co-pilot mid-flight, it can slow decisions and force a quick search for a replacement.

Source: TechCrunch AI